


Rival

by orphan_account



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, And then shit kinda goes down, Basically Steve and Tony hate each other before they even know each other, High School AU, I don't know how to tag this, Love/Hate Relationship, M/M, Rival Sports Team AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-05-16
Updated: 2015-05-18
Packaged: 2018-03-30 19:20:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,183
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3948595
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Steve Rogers is the Captain of his football team in Fury's High. When the coach announces that Steve and his team are playing the school with the fancy name and the rich, annoying, smart kids next week, they aren't at all happy. Things go slightly out of hand, and Steve finds himself falling for the guy who is  the literal image of his "Oh No No's" list, and who also broke his best friend's arm.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

It was exactly 4:36 p.m. and Steve Rogers was running around the pitch with his fellow team mates while the coach was barking mad at them, urging them to hurry and telling them to stop behaving like 'a bunch of little girls'. Steve disliked the comment, little boys can be pretty lousy too. After all, he wasn't the fittest kid himself untill he got that glorious growth spurt. It's funny, really. He used to be this disgusting sickly child who got pushed around constantly. Now he's the most good looking, best built guy in the school. Not his words, Bucky's.

Sniffling from the cold, Steve lead the team as they were jogging. He wasn't at all tired. He never was. Perhaps that was why he was the coach's favourite. Steve's mind was able to work quickly during a game and his physique was on point. That obviously made him the best on his team. Steve's head began to wander. He thought about all that maths homework he had to do, and that art project he had to finish, and study for that stupid history test. That cute girl who smiled at him at the lockers today (Peggy was her name, recalled Steve), and that kid he saved from being hit by a bully.

The coach's ear-piercing whistle blow pulled Steve back to the present. He beckoned them all to come over to him, and the team sluggishly obliged. He started in that loud annoying voice of his, "Now, I have an announcement to make," Team exchanged hesitant looks, "We're playing the MESA's next week." Everyone groaned in irritation. The Maths, Engineering and Science Academy was filled with rich, obnoxious, smart-ass snobs. And they weren't just extremly good with numbers and equations, but they were one of the best football teams in the state. However, so was Fury's High School (the one where Steve Rogers goes to). Yeah, maybe their name wasn't as fancy as MESA's, though this was about the sport not about names or brains.

They were sent off to the locker rooms where they showered and got changed. Steve hated it, it always smelled so bad with sweat and dirty socks. Soon he was out and walking towards home with his best friend Bucky Barnes at his side.

"So, you excited for the game?" Asked Bucky.

"Well, yeah, but they're all so stuck-up and arrogant, I don't think the game will be much fun," Steve answered.

"I suppose, yeah. Still, I'll sure as hell enjoy kicking their smug asses at the game." The two started laughing.

By the time they arrived at Steve's house, it was about six o'clock. They had pizza and then went up into Steve's room, played on the X Box, watched a really bad movie, and fell asleep on the floor. The next day, Bucky and Steve will wake up with a really bad back-ache.

A week and a day later, Bucky will wake up in a hospital with a broken arm. Steve will be very angry and frustrated with a certain opponent of his with the name "Stark" and the number "01" on his jersey. All in all, James Buchanan "Bucky" Barnes did not kick any smug asses on the night of the match.


	2. Chapter 2

Half an hour until the match and the boys were adjusting their gear and going through final checks. This was their biggest game of the year. They were practicly shaking with anticipation. Soon after, the coach joined in and gave them one of those sappy, deep, encouraging pep talks. This always got Steve's adrenaline rushing. He was ready. A pat on the back from Bucky and they rushed out onto the field.

The sun was going down and the sky was a mixture of orange and dark blue. It was absolutely freezing. Steve rubbed his hands together and blew hot air on them. The floodlights were already on. The team got into their assigned places. Steve was center. He got a good look at his rival. His face looked slightly familiar. He had brown eyes, brown hair, slightly darker skin than his own. A smirk was playing on his lips. Steve had to admit he wasn't at all bad looking. He must have stared for too long because the guy said, "Enjoying the view, Rogers? You wouldn't be the first." Steve could feel the heat rising up his cheeks, he prayed to God the guy couldn't see him blush. He also wondered how he got his name, maybe he caught a glimpse of the back of his shirt when they were coming in.

Before Steve could reply, the whistle was blown and the game was kicked off. To Steve's surprise it went quite smoothly. The other team was a bit of a challange but they played fair and square. Steve enjoyed it if anything. He hadn't played a game this good in months.The crowd was cheering loudly and the team was co-operating. He loved it. He spotted the other guy and saw that his name was Stark. He realised now why he looked so familiar. Steve saw the boy's father, Howard Stark, all over the media. He was one of the richest and smartest people in the world. And Tony Stark was the child prodigy. Born into a wealthy family filled with genius. Steve had no doubts whatsoever that Tony Stark was the snarkiest, most spoilt and self confident prick out there. He was already annoyed by him, even though they only exchanged a couple of words. Actually, scratch that. Steve didn't say anything, only Stark did.

And then there it was, the horrible crack of a bone followed by an awfully painfull cry. Steve searched the field immediately, and saw his best friend Bucky on the ground, clutching his arm close. Steve ran to him right away, pushing people out of the way. Right beside Bucky was Stark. He looked like he really, really, really didn't want to be there. Super uncomfortable. But as quick as it came it also disappeared. He stood up straight and a mask of confidence was set upon his features. With that, Steve figured it must have been him that hurt Bucky.

"What the hell, Stark?" Steve said as he got up from Bucky's side. Turned out that he was about a head taller than him. Yet his aroma of complete control and determination made Stark seem bigger.

"The guy appeared out of nowhere, it's his own fault!" Stark defended himself.

"'His own fault'? God! You know how childish that sounds?" Steve fought back. Tony looked super pissed. His face turned cold and dark.

"Whatever, Rogers. Go back to your boyfriend." He retorted. Steve could feel another blush creeping up. He turned away and saw that the paramedics were taking Bucky into an ambulance, he went straight after them. He could hear his coach shouting to come back, go back into the game, that the team needed him. Steve couldn't give a shit. Bucky needed him more.

~

The chair in Bucky's hospital room hurt Steve's butt. He was about to get up and go grab a drink when a raspy voice interrupted the silence. "Morning beautiful." Bucky managed to choke out.

"Morning? It's three in the afternoon." Steve smiled. "How are you feeling?"

"Terrible. Did we win the game?" asked Bucky.

"I wouldn't know. I left with you. Coach is going to be mad, I'll probably get banned from training for a month,"

"You just walked out? You're an idiot, you know that, right?"

Their conversation was interrupted with a nurse walking into the room. "Oh you're awake! Everything alright? If you're feeling a bit tired, that's the morphine working. Your operation has been scheduled for tomorrow. Meanwhile, we will keep you here to take some X-rays. From inspection, the injury isn't too bad. We just have to move the radius bone to the correct place so that it can heal properly." Bucky nodded, even though he wasn't at all listening. Steve knew.

"Thanks a lot," Always being the gentleman, Steve gave the nurse a sweet smile.

Bucky turned on the ancient looking box of a television that was up on the wall in the corner of the place. Some kind of a stupid talk show was on. Steve saw the name 'Howard Stark' flash on the screen. This made Steve's blood boil instantly. Tony Stark hadn't shown his smug face here at all. He didn't even come to apologise to Bucky, hadn't made any effort whatsoever. Steve despised people like this. People who couldn't own up to their shit or didn't care about anyone else than themselves. People who thought they were better than anyone. And yeah, maybe Steve was biased. He didn't actually know the guy at all. But what more could there be to someone like that?

After about an hour of watching bad TV, Steve confessed that he was tired as hell and should go home. Bucky seemed pretty upset, but he knew that Steve had to go. He started to smell a bit. He didn't have a shower since before the match and he got all sweaty during it.

~

As predicted, Steve was banned from training. Luckily the coach only gave him two weeks. Steve realised that now he had absolutely nothing to do everyday after school. Bucky would do what training he could with his arm so Steve couldn't hang out with him. He would go out for a run most of the days but today was different. Steve was in an artsy mood. He decided to go out to the park and draw some of the trees or whatever else he might find.

He sat himself on a wooden bench. The white paint was almost all worn-off from the weather and what remained of the colour was more grey-ish than white. He took out his drawing pad and a set of three pencils. An average sized magnolia tree was right before him on the other side of the path. Steve started off with the simple and basic shapes and then added in the detail. It was nice to take a break and finally do something he genuinely liked and found relaxing. But that feeling didn't last for long.

A sudden shadow blocked out his view. Steve looked up to find the one and only Tony Stark.

"What you drawing there, Rogers? I see you're enjoying your retirement."

Steve rolled his eyes, "If you don't mind, please move. You're kind of in the way." Steve saw a flash of anger in Tony's eyes. 

"I see you're still upset about the incident." 'Incident' being Bucky's arm. Steve had enough. He stood up and towered over Stark. He saw the smaller guy take a step back.

"What is your problem Stark? Just back off, alright? You don't even have the decency to fucking apologise for what you did!"

"Excuse me? My father payed for those hospital bills! One would think that would be enough." Steve had no clue that they did that. He felt pretty bad now, but he wasn't finished just yet.

"This isn't about the money! It's about being a good person and having the balls to look someone straight in the eyes and say you're sorry for what you did!"

"An apology? Is that all you fucking want?" Tony couldn't believe it. Steve looked long and hard at Tony and then nodded.

Stark took a step forward and leaned in. He whispered seductively into Steve's ear, "Make me."

With that, Stark was gone and Steve was left standing there looking stunned as fuck.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I realised that this is looking more stevebucky rather than stevetony, but I'll get there eventually. This fanfic has a really slow build up. Please bare with me. I'm not really feeling this chapter though. I was pretty tired so I'm sorry if this sucks. And if you want please comment your opinions. 
> 
> Agata x


	3. Chapter 3

It was a Saturday and Steve was going out to eat with Bucky. They ended up in a cheap, dirty fast food place that was way too overcrowded. Steve went to order something for the two of them while Bucky searched for a place to sit. He could hardly carry anything with that new cast on his arm.

When Steve returned with two cheese burgers, medium sized fries and two cokes he certainly did not expect Tony Stark to be sitting in his seat and chatting away with his best friend. He almost dropped the food tray in surprise. The guy was everywhere these days. But what would he be doing in a place that was so below his standards? Shouldn't he be having some fancy-ass French dinner in a restaurant that didn't let you in if you were underdressed?

Speaking of clothes, Stark didn't look at all bad. His grey shirt was well fitted around his muscular arms. The material looked nice, expensive and soft. Steve almost reached out to touch it when he realised what the actual fuck he was doing. 

Steve awkwardly cleared his throat and all attention was averted to him.

"Oh hey Steve, this is Tony," Bucky started. 

Steve scoffed, "I know too damn well who he is."

"Uhm, okay. Well, Tony here was just saying sorry for breaking my arm. Well he didn't actually break it. It was an accident after all so he really didn't have to-" Bucky was ranting but was rudely interrupted by Steve.

"Wait, he what?"

"He was just apologising. Don't get your panties in a twist," Bucky joked. Stark laughed. Steve wanted to hit the both of them. 

"Did you know he also payed for the hospital bills? Dude I can't believe how nice this guy is. Thank you so much, Tony." It was hard to miss the obvious gratitude that Bucky displayed. 

Stark spoke for the first time since Steve's arrival. "No problem James."

"You can call me Bucky." 

Then Tony Stark turned towards Steve and gave him such a bright smile that could make girls swoon from a mile away. Maybe even some boys. "So how are you doing, Steve? Sorry that you missed the game. It was absolutely amazing. We won by just two points, it was a close one. I bet if you and Bucky were there we wouldn't stand chance. I heard you're a bit of a legend at football."

Steve was flipping with anger. What was Stark playing at? He had Bucky wrapped around his finger within just five minutes of conversation. Bucky was Steve's. He won't allow some stupid rich kid to use him for amusement and then throw him away when he gets bored. Steve was never the one to play along. He cherished honesty and straightforwardness. Clearly, Tony Stark did not.

"What are you doing here, huh? Don't you have some place better to be?" remarked Steve. 

"As a matter of fact, I do. But that can wait. I just wanted to have some nice chit-chat." Stark shot back.

Bucky didn't want any trouble. He cut in, "Steve please, chill out. Don't be so stiff."

Steve decided to ignore Bucky. Stupid Steve. "I'm going to ask you one last time. What are you doing here?"

Stark rolled his eyes. "Oh you know, just seeing what a day in the life of a commoner is like." Bucky laughed, but soon regretted it when he saw the look on Steve's face. His intense glare at Stark made Bucky cringe in fear. This wasn't going well at all. He had no idea what had gotten into Steve.

Stark placed his hand on Steve's arm. "I'm joking, Steve." He sounded like he was talking to a five year old.

Steve flinched away and hissed, "Can I talk to you? In private. Right now." A quick reassuring glance at Bucky and Steve was already leaving the building. He didn't even care to look back, he was pretty sure Stark was following behind. 

When they were out, Steve heard Stark mutter, "I don't usually follow people around."

Steve grabbed Tony Stark by that nice shirt that he may or may not have been checking out earlier and pinned him against the wall. "Now I don't know what kind of game you're playing here, Stark. But stay the fuck away from Bucky, you got that? You hurt him, I hurt you."

"Didn't know you'd be that much of a protective boyfriend." Stark's voice wavered, yet he still didn't drop his sarcasm. 

"What? We're not dating. We're just friends." Steve's grip on Tony Stark loosened a bit. 

"So you're not into boys then?" Stark found this very amusing.

"No. What? I never said that." Steve let go of Tony.

"So you _are_ into boys?" Steve was all very much confused.

"I don't know! Wait why am I telling you this? Where were we-"

"You were holding me up against the wall. Super close. Seemed like you wanted to make out." 

"I don't want to make out with you! Where do you get this from? What is this? What? I was just- I mean- Ugh." Steve pinched the bridge of his nose. "Just leave Bucky alone, alright? Leave him out of this. I don't want someone like _you_ hurting him. I don't want _anyone_ hurting him."

Steve thought he saw what looked like sadness on Stark's face when he said 'you' as if it was a nasty word. He chose to ignore it, maybe he just imagined it. 

Tony Stark remained unusually quiet. Then he nodded in understanding and tried his best to smile at Steve. It was painful to watch "Alright. I'll stay away from him. Sorry for causing all the inconvenience. I just think we started off on the wrong foot. You seem like a pretty cool guy. I'll see you around then."

And once again, Steve Rogers found himself dumbstruck by Tony Stark. 

~

Things were settling back to normal. Steve has returned to training and school was going well. Too bad that this was all going to end pretty soon. Next week the summer holidays were starting. Steve had no plans at all. He was probably going to spend his time with Bucky again. The two of them playing video games, eating unhealthy food, and going to random parties. The usual.

Steve hasn't seen Tony Stark for three weeks. He remained hidden from Steve since that terrible argument they had. Steve couldn't believe that he confessed he was sexually confused to frickin' Tony Stark! _The_ Tony Stark. Most famous kid out there. If word got out that Steve was possible gay, or bisexual, he didn't know yet, then Steve would be so fucking dead. Even Bucky didn't know. And that's saying something. Bucky knows everything that there is to know about Steve. 

Steve tried to ignore all this nonsense that was happening in his head. Although he hasn't seen Tony Stark, he couldn't stop thinking about him. 

~

Summer was finally here and Bucky was raving about this party that was happening that night. He said it was the biggest party of the year, that they had to go. Only losers don't go. No, actually, even the losers and nerds go (Steve and Bucky weren't exactly popular, but not much hated either. They were more middle ground, maybe slightly below).

After hours of persuasion, Steve agreed to go. Little did he know what he was getting himself into.  

Bucky sort of forgot to mention that it was Tony Stark's party.

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really rushed this and I don't know I have no idea how this went. Pleaseeeee comment. Only if you want to though. But do it. Please. Comments are my life source and what keeps me going. Anyway, thank you all so much for reading. You're great. I love you. I hope you enjoyed this !!! Finally some steve tony action is happening yessss. This is really short once again. I'm shit at writing long chapters. Ok I'm going to stfu now.
> 
> Agata x

**Author's Note:**

> Hello I just started writing this. It's my first fanfic, and I would love for y'all to comment what you think. I know it's really short, so it's hard to tell if it's going well or not. But all comments and kudos and whatever would be immensely appreciated! Thanks a bunch for reading,
> 
> Agata x


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